The problem of oil spills on water is of increasing concern to the public today and this concern is reflected by legislated sanctions against concerns so spoiling the environment and by public outcries and bad publicity attached to such spillages of oil. Consequently, there is a considerable demand for an easily transportable, relatively inexpensive and effective means for removing oil spilled into a body of water.
One solution to this problem is proposed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,344 to Webb. Webb proposes a relatively compact floating apparatus containing a plurality of semi-submerged rotating discs. The rotating discs pick up oil from the water and scrappers are provided to remove oil from the discs and transfer the oil through channels. In order to always present a number of discs in the direction of a layer of oil floating on the water, a circular shape for the apparatus was chosen with the discs oriented in a radial direction thereabouts. To drive the discs, teeth are provided on the periphery of the discs engaging with a central worm gear ring. In practice it has been found that the gear teeth on the periphery of the disc rapidly break off during operation of the apparatus, quickly debilitating it. Additionally, the drive means just described is relatively complex, expensive, and subject to fouling by debris floating on the water.